Getting Engaged
by Miami Blackheart
Summary: Things didn't exactly go as planned for Michael. Nikita now knew about the engagement ring he tried so hard to hide. How will they deal with it? Thoughts, doubts, reactions, and conversations. Set mid-3x01. One-shot.


_Disclaimer: I own Nikita... Yeah, I wish. _

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**Hey everyone!**

**Just a little one-shot plotbunny. The whole Michael-and-Nikita-getting-engaged brought out the sappy, fluffy fangirl in me.**

**Okay, so this is set after that epic scene where Michael gets Nikita's engagement ring back from that creepy HKPD guy ("Give me the damn Glock!" – Haha!), and before he formally and traditionally asks her to marry him. This is more on how they're dealing now that the whole proposal plan has been discovered. Kind of like a missing scene, if you want. :D**

**Oh, and for those who wanna know, I'm still continuing Marbles. The next chapter is just taking a bit longer than I expected. Real life. Ugh. Sorry. I'll definitely try to post the update within the next few days.**

**Anyway, read on and enjoy! :)**

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**Getting Engaged**

Michael didn't know what to say.

He didn't mean to tell Nikita about the engagement ring. At least not at that moment yet. And definitely not when the Hong Kong police and MSS were after them.

But in his frustration, everything slipped out of his mouth when she wouldn't give him that damned Glock when he asked for it. He was in a hurry and he wasn't thinking properly. He had been through hell to get that ring and no crooked, enterprising cop was going to simply take it away from him.

Glancing outside the window, Michael pursed his lips and stifled an exasperated sigh.

_None of this was supposed to happen_, he thought.

Though to be honest with himself, Michael didn't really know exactly _when_ he was going to propose to Nikita. He just knew it would have to be soon.

But he did have sort of an idea on how things should have been leading up to that special moment. It was a plan he had been toying in his mind for some weeks now. And when they were to be sent to Hong Kong, he thought that it would be the perfect opportunity. That was why he asked Ryan to give them an extended stay after the mission was over (thus forcing him to share his 'plan'). Michael was hoping that with the quality time he and Nikita would get to spend with each other would help him calm his nerves and gather the courage to pop the question.

His ideal scenario was that he was going to take Nikita to dinner in the city. After that, just like any normal couple, they'd go for a stroll to enjoy the weather, the sights and localities of the place – something they have rarely done in the years before. And then when they'd reach a place that had a beautiful fountain with lights, or somewhere as equally picturesque, he'd turn to her, go down on one knee and ask her.

It would have been perfect.

But with the Chinese authorities now looking for them… well, there goes their extended stay. And Michael's golden opportunity.

"So this was nothing like Bolivia."

Michael was pulled out of his thoughts at Nikita's voice. Though feeling a bit disconcerted at her dry and flat tone, he transferred his gaze to her. But she wasn't looking at him, not even bothering a glance. She was staring intently on the road as she drove. And since Michael was still handcuffed and in the back seat of the car, he couldn't really do anything but focus on the back of her head.

But he could tell that Nikita was tense. And it just made Michael feel bad even more.

"Yeah. Different complications." He joked weakly.

That made Nikita glance at him through the rear view mirror for the briefest second. But she remained silent. Again.

Michael was getting uncomfortable with the silence as the moments dragged on. He absolutely had no clue on what Nikita was thinking right now. But he had a pretty strong feeling that it was probably about them and the recent events that transpired not too long ago. Oh what he wouldn't give to know what was going on inside her head at that moment...

Gazing out the window again, he saw that they were entering a secluded alley. No doubt to dispose of the stolen SUV. Reaching for the velvet box, which now seemed to weigh heavily inside his pocket, Michael made sure for the nth time that it was still there.

Why did everything have to be so complicated?

Nikita glanced at Michael through the mirror again. She saw him taking the box out and turning it over and over in his hands. Her lips stretched a little as she knew that he was nervous.

Pulling the car to a stop at the end of the alley, Nikita breathed deeply. She focused her gaze on a single spot on the leather cover of the steering wheel. But in her mind's eye, all she kept on seeing was the small box in Michael's hands.

And what it represented.

She could feel her heart skipping beats in her chest.

"So…" She managed to keep her voice steady as she turned the car's engine off. Her throat seemed to have gone dry, "an engagement ring."

She could feel Michael's gaze on her again. But for some reason, she couldn't bear to look at him in the eye right now.

"You weren't supposed to know." He said softly. A resigned sigh escaped his lips. "Not yet anyway."

Nikita wanted to say something but she didn't know what. Shifting her left hand on the steering wheel, her ring finger caught her attention. She found herself staring at it.

"You were going to propose." Nikita stated, closing her eyes briefly. She whispered, still not believing it, "To me."

Michael gave a rather sad smirk. "Yeah."

They were silent for next few seconds. Both lost in their own thoughts. But when Nikita couldn't take the tension anymore, she shook her head, opened the door to her side, and slowly stepped out of the car.

Her head was in a jumble of thoughts. She knew she should be happy. Ecstatic. Over the moon. In fact, that was what she first felt when Michael said that he was going to get her engagement ring back from the Hong Kong police earlier. But when she got over the initial surprise and thought more about it, other emotions settled in.

Doubt. Apprehension. Anxiety.

She loved Michael. She really did. And she trusted his love for her too. Because she knew what kind of a man Michael was.

But things were just not as simple as they should be.

It wasn't about him. It was about her. She didn't trust herself because she knew what she was capable of. And Michael didn't seem to realize the risk of it all.

That was what made Nikita feel uneasy.

"Why?" She asked when she heard Michael get out of the car and walked over to her.

His eyebrows knitted. "What?"

Glancing up to him, she saw the pureness in his bright eyes. It was almost too much. Looking away, she questioned in a low voice, "Why me?"

Michael stared at Nikita like he didn't understand what she wanted. He was so caught off-guard by her words that he didn't know how to react at first. _Was she really asking him that question? _He almost smiled at the silliness of it. Tilting his head to the side, he countered, "Why not?"

Taking his cuffed hands in hers, Nikita ran her thumb across his knuckles. She stared at the metal links because she couldn't get herself to look into his green eyes when she said, "Michael, you know who I am. What I can be…" Memories of her lashing out when she was being held captive by Brandt flashed through her mind. It still haunted her at times. And she also remembered how easy it was for her to hurt Michael. She couldn't do that to him again. Not ever. Her voice grew smaller as she added, "I don't know if I deserve to be –"

"Don't deserve to be what?" Michael interrupted her. "Happy?"

Nikita didn't answer. She didn't know _what_ to answer. So instead, she reached into her leather jacket and pulled out a metal key Alex had given her earlier. Silently, she unlocked the handcuffs from Michael's hands and let it all fall to the ground in soft _clinks_.

Comprehension slowly dawned on Michael. He realized what Nikita was holding on to, what was eating her up inside all this time. It wasn't because of the shock and suddenness of his proposal and what it all meant for them. It wasn't because she didn't want it. No...

Pondering about it though, in a way, Michael did have some fault in this. He should have given more thought on what was going to be her reaction. But when he had set his mind on what he was going to do, he had focused all his energy on that, thinking that Nikita would just go along with it like any other woman.

But then it was also kind of stupid for him to think that Nikita was like any other woman. If she was, she wouldn't be the woman he had fallen in love with.

And she was right on what she had said before: once he had focused on one thing, he had blinded himself to think about anything else.

She really did know him.

But she wasn't the only one. She had to know that he knew her too.

"Nikita," Michael said, cupping her face in his hands so that she would look up to him. His lips had stretched into a gentle smile. He told her, "You really have to learn to love yourself. You have to see that you are perfect, no matter what you say or think."

Running his calloused thumb across her mocha cheek, he added, enunciating every word carefully, "After _everything_ we've been through, you, of all people, deserve to be happy. And to be loved. Even more. And I want to be the one who can give and share it with you. The two of us. Together."

Nikita's lower lip quivered. Her brown eyes turned glassy. The back of her throat thickened. The wall she had unconsciously formed around herself after knowing Michael's intention to propose to her begun to break down.

His green eyes shone with sincerity. Nikita had never seen Michael this sure about something. He really wanted this for her. For them.

Then she found herself believing in him. And in herself, to an extent.

Maybe she can do this. Maybe this was a chance she was willing to take. Maybe she did deserve happiness after all…

What did she ever do to deserve a man like Michael?

Nikita took a deep breath and then slowly grinned. She saw Michael visibly relax as she did so. Like a huge weight was lifted from him. Trying her best to staunch the tears that threatened to fall, she didn't know whether to just cry or laugh. And she still didn't know what were the right words to say at that moment.

But she could almost see it. A future. Together. For the both of them.

Like Bonnie and Clyde. Just without the last part.

They would be Michael _and _Nikita.

It would be so worth it.

Placing her hand on the center of Michael's chest, Nikita could feel his steady heartbeat beneath her fingers. A chuckle escaped her lips as she thought that there was still something she wanted to know.

"_Why_?"

Michael looked at her in disbelief at being asked the same question yet again. Letting out a small laugh, he gathered the stray strands of her brown hair and tucked them behind her ear. He then let his hand curl and linger on the side of her slender neck. Staring deeply into her eyes, he said, "Because you're the most beautiful and strongest person I've ever met. And you can be crazy and reckless and scare the crap out of me but I'll still love you anyway. Every single part of you."

A tear rolled down Nikita's cheek but she still smiled. Reaching up, she pressed her lips tenderly to Michael's. When she pulled away, she leaned her forehead against his and whispered, "I'll still love you anyway too."

I I

Taking some time to dust off the dirt from their clothes and make their selves look presentable, Michael and Nikita emerged from the alley hand in hand, minutes later.

Though they were told that the coast was clear, they still checked around for anything suspicious. But since back at the alley, there were no windows facing the area, there was little chance for them to have been spotted. And Birkhoff had disabled the car's GPS, giving the HKPD a harder time to track them down.

But after walking a few blocks away from the alley, Michael called a taxi for them to get into. They would have wanted to take a leisure stroll back to their hotel but Ryan told them that they had to be extracted right away to prevent any more untoward _incidences._

Nikita rolled her eyes, making Michael smile. What happened earlier wasn't any of their fault.

Well, not entirely.

"Too bad we couldn't enjoy our extended stay here," Nikita thought aloud while watching the streets and buildings of Hong Kong flash by in a blur. Turning around, she placed a hand on Michael's lap and told him, "It would've been fun."

"We could always come back," he suggested, taking her hand in his.

"Yeah." Nikita remarked, quickly glimpsing at their taxi driver. She sometimes forgot that they were free people now. They could go anywhere without constantly looking over their shoulders, or worry that their enemies would be right in front of them. Everything's already been like that for a little over a month now but it still had some getting used to.

Leaning her head against Michael's shoulder, she let out a soft sigh. Being free felt nice. She, Michael and the others could do things normal people could do. Like go out, have a cup of coffee in a café, make new friends, have a permanent home, settle down, get…

Married.

Slowly, Nikita's gaze travelled down to their entwined hands.

To her ring finger.

She smiled.

"Do I get to see it?" Nikita asked.

"See what?"

"The ring."

"Oh." Michael chuckled softly. "No."

"What?" Nikita pulled away to look at him. Her face scrunched up in confusion. "Michael –"

"Just trust me, Nikita," He said. A smile touched his lips as he saw the curious glint in her eyes. "You'll see the ring. Soon. But I want things to be perfect, just like the way I planned."

Michael didn't really know what he was saying. But he just didn't want Nikita to see the engagement ring yet. Sure, all his ideas on how everything should have been may have blown up in his face but he still wanted to do things properly. They both deserve to have things done right.

And he was sure that he could think up of something. Anything. The two of them were the definition of second chances, and this special occasion was going to be no different.

But he could tell Nikita wasn't buying it.

She narrowed her eyes at him, looking like she was trying to figure what angle he was trying to play. She commented, "I don't know how you can make it any more perfect. I already know what you want."

"I know." He smirked. _She really liked rubbing that in, didn't she_? Michael couldn't help but think. He squeezed her hand lightly as he told her, "But it goes against tradition."

"Tradition?" It was her turn to laugh. "Michael, in case you haven't noticed, there's nothing traditional about us."

"Just be patient, Nikita." He said simply. "If I'm gonna do this, I want to do it my way."

Nikita stared at Michael with an amused expression in her eyes. But she wasn't able to come up with a reply as they had already pulled up at the Grand Mandarin Hotel. They looked at each other for a second, silently conversing on who was going to pay the fare. But since Michael didn't have his wallet with him, Nikita ended up paying. And she made a quick quip on how ungentlemanly her companion was as she did so.

"By the way," Michael said, offering his hand as Nikita got out of the cab. He decided to let her remark of being ungentlemanly slide. For now. He was going to make her pay for that later. He still had other things in his mind as of the moment, "you never did say what your answer was gonna be."

"And you said you were all about tradition." Nikita mocked. She delighted in watching the sheepish expression that appeared on Michael's face. She grinned as she reminded him, "You haven't even _properly _asked yet."

Michael couldn't stop the upward tug of his lips. Nikita was definitely enjoying lording his mishap over him. Placing a hand on the small of her back, he ushered her into the hotel where the doorman was already waiting to welcome them. He confessed, "Well, it would definitely ease some of my anxiety if I was sure on what you were gonna say."

A bright glint appeared in her eyes as she smirked. "Scared that I'm not gonna agree to what you want?"

"Terrified." Michael chuckled. As they entered the building, he leaned closer to her and whispered in her ear, "You do have a habit on never agreeing to what I have to say."

"Well," She said. Turning to face him, she tugged and smoothened the collar of his light blue polo shirt. She patted down some imaginary lint from his shoulder. Briefly glancing down at his pocket, she told him, "you can be terrified a bit longer. I won't tell you my answer until I see the ring."

Nikita left Michael before he had any chance to respond. She didn't see the smile that graced his lips.

As she entered the lobby, she saw Alex, Sean, and the rest of Division's Alpha Team sitting by the lounge, bags packed, and waiting for their arrival. But Alex and Sean seemed to be deep in an intimate conversation and the others were too busy minding their own business so they didn't really notice Nikita's appearance as of yet. She glanced over her shoulder to check on Michael and saw that he was just a few steps away.

"What do you say to dinner when we get back home?" He asked when he got to her.

Nikita was already about to walk over to the others but Michael's question stopped her. She turned to him, tilted her head to the side, and raised her eyebrows in a disbelieving manner. She groaned, "Oh, Michael…"

"What?" He almost sounded defensive.

"Please don't say that you're one of those guys who'll…" She thought for a moment, and then chuckled. "Plan a romantic dinner in some nice place and when everything's going great, go down on one knee and ask the question, are you?"

Michael knew Nikita meant it as a joke but he couldn't believe she figured out his plan. Is she able to read him _that_ easily?

He almost laughed. But he was smart enough to not let any of his emotions betray him further. He didn't need Nikita to know any more than she already did. So instead, he just kissed her lightly on the lips. After he pulled away, he walked over to where their companions were.

Nikita watched Michael as he left. He didn't really give her an answer to her last question, making her all the more curious.

_She didn't just find out about his plan, did she?_

Maybe she'll have to wait it out and see.

But she was definitely sure that Michael didn't really need to ask her. Or show her the ring.

Because Nikita already knew what her answer was going to be.

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**So did you like it?**

**Leave a Review and let me knooow!**

**And thank you so much for reading!**

**Oh, and before I end this A/N… Please, please, please watch this amazing show LIVE! Tell your friends, your family, anybody and everybody! This show needs more viewers! The ratings have seriously been horrible and if it goes any lower, the network could *gasp* cancel it... We can't let that happen!**

**Okay? :]**

**Season 3 rocks.**

**xx Dani**


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